WILSON, N.C.- After a busy day of softball on Saturday afternoon, concluding with an extra-inning (10 inning) victory over Francis Marion to go 1-1 on opening day, the ninth-ranked West Chester softball team (1-3) returned to action on Sunday afternoon at Barton College (4-0). West Chester dropped the first game of the day, falling by an 11-7 final before falling to Barton by a 9-8 final in extra innings marking the second game in as many days for West Chester that took extra innings to decide a victor.
Game One: Barton 11 West Chester 7
West Chester took an early lead, scoring a pair of runs in the first inning thanks to a bases-loaded walk by
Trisha Kopinetz (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove) and a sacrifice fly by
Emily Kim (Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright) after the first five batters of the game all managed to reach base safely to give the Purple and Gold an early two-run lead.
Antonia Browning (Newark, Del./Charter School of Wilmington) who got the ball in game one for West Chester, ran into some early trouble surrendering four runs in the bottom of the first to send the Golden Rams to the second inning trailing 4-2. On the day, Browning who took her first loss of the season, lasted just two innings surrendering six runs on three hits and three walks
In the top of the third, West Chester cut the deficit in half as
Haleigh Karcher (Jefferson Hills, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) doubled to left to plate Kim who had reached on a double of her own earlier in the inning, sending the game to the home half, with West Chester trailing 4-3. In the home half, Barton answered back with two more runs, to claim a 6-3 leading heading into the fourth.
In the fourth,
Grace Aguilar (Frederica, Del./Lake Forst) cut into the deficit once again with an RBI single, which scored
Madison Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) making the score 6-4 before Barton responded with a run of its own in the home half to restore a three-run lead.
In the top of the fifth, West Chester roared back, evening the score at 7-7 thanks to an RBI single off the bat of
Alexa Peterson (Exton, Pa./Bishop Shanahan), which was followed up by a two-RBI double from
Hailey Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) tying the score at seven.
Barton did not allow the score to remain tied for long, scoring three runs of its own in the home half before adding another run in the sixth to earn the 11-7 victory.
Offensively, the Melvin sisters led the way for West Chester, combining to go 4-for-6 with two runs scored and two RBI (Madison 3-for-5, two runs scored/Hailey 1-for-1, one walk, two RBI).
In the circle,
Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) relieved Browning, giving West Chester two innings in relief scattering two hits and three runs over her work before exiting in favor of
Anna Torrens (Holmes, Pa./Ridley) who pitched 1.1, surrendering tow runs on one hit with two walks and one strikeout.
Summer Williams (Middletown, Del./Appoquinimink) finished out the game in the circle, pitching the final 0.2 of an inning, surrendering just one hit and one walk to conclude the contest.
For Barton, Rilee Jones got the start and pitched the first three innings, surrendering three runs on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts before exiting for Gracelyn Massey who tossed the next 3.2 innings, scattering six hits and four runs to earn her first victory of the young season.
Game Two: Barton 9 West Chester 8-8 Innings
Similarly, to the first game of the afternoon, West Chester's offense was alive early, as four of the first five Golden Ram batters reached safely to open the game, which allowed West Chester to take an early 1-0 lead after Kim reached on a fielders choice to plate Melvin who had led the game off with an infield single.
As it had for much of the day, Barton responded quickly to this early deficit scoring two runs in the home half of the first before adding another in the second to take a 3-1 lead.
This 3-1 advantage held up over the next few innings as neither side was able to push a run across until the top of the fourth. In the top of the fourth inning, Karcher started the inning with a double to left center, which closed the book on the Bulldogs starting pitcher. The Barton relief pitcher was greeted by an
Olivia Mock (Clifton, Va./Paul V Catholic) single into left center, to score
Tess Smiley (Havertown, Pa./Haverford) who had entered as a pinch runner for Karcher.
Asia Bernard (Levittown, Pa./Neshaminy) pinch ran for Mock and moved over to third after a productive bunt by
Abigail Quinn (Cheltenham, Pa./William Penn Charter), allowing her to score on an RBI single off the bat of
Hailey Melvin to even the score at 3-3. The score held at 3-3 until the home half of the sixth when Barton answered with four runs on three hits and one error to retake a 7-3 lead heading into the seventh inning.
Not willing to go down quietly, West Chester loaded the bases with just one out in the top of the seventh thanks to singles from
Katelyn Rittenbaugh (Donaldson, Pa./Pine Grove), Kopinetz, and Kim, which allowed the Golden Rams to tie the game following a two-RBI double from Karcher and a two-RBI single from Mock in back-to-back at bats, evening the score at 7-7 with just one out in the top of the seventh. Quinn kept the line moving with a single to left, which put runners on first and second with just one out in the inning prompting a late pitching change by the Bulldogs. AnnaKate Gilchrist entered in relief of Jones, looking to halt the Golden Rams momentum and was able to do just that, getting a pair of quick outs to send the game to the home half of the seventh deadlocked at 7-7.
In the home half of the seventh, Edwards got through the Bulldogs easily, forcing extra innings for the second time in as many games.
To begin the extra frame,
Madison Melvin was placed on second after registering the final out of the top of the seventh, and moved to third on a groundout by Rittenbaugh to open the frame allowing her to score on a RBI single to center field from Kopinetz to make the score 8-7 heading to the bottom of the eighth. Barton answered back once again, tying the score at 8-8 on a bunt single with one out in the inning before scoring the game-winning run a few batters later to escape with a 9-8 extra-inning victory.
Mary Picozzi (Collegeville, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) started the in the circle for West Chester and pitched well for much of her outing, tossing 5.2 innings scattering eight hits and seven runs, although only three of these runs were earned with four walks and a pair of strikeouts before exiting for Edwards. Edwards entered in relief and got the final out of the frame on a pop-up to third base to send the game to the seventh with West Chester trailing by four. Edwards was eventually saddled with the loss, pitching a scoreless seventh before giving up two runs in the setback.
Miranda Holmes got the start for Barton and pitched three complete, surrendering three hits, and eventually being charged with two earned runs before exiting in favor of Kierstin Cooper who pitched the fourth inning, giving up one run on three hits with two walks. Jones, who got the start in the first game of the afternoon, entered in relief and pitched the next 2.1 surrendering seven hits and four runs as West Chester rallied back to even the score at 7-all in the seventh inning. Gilchrist, did her job in relief, getting the final out of the seventh and keeping the explosive Golden Ram offense to just one run in the eighth inning to earn the victory.
Mock led West Chester offensively in game two, going 2-for-4 as one of eight Golden Rams with a hit (one of six with two hits) and three RBI in the setback.
West Chester will have a few weeks off before its next action later this month at Glenville State on the last weekend of the month as the Golden Rams will face Salem, West Virginia State, Mercyhurst, and the host Pioneers in single games over the course of two days (2/25 & 2/26) in Glenville, West Virginia.
